Orange offense propels them to victory over Albany

Cuse WLAX beats Albany 19-12

The fourth-ranked Syracuse Orange added an exclamation point win to its season as they cruised passed Albany 19-12. The ladies are 3-0 and have scored a total of 59-goals.

After a successful West Coast road trip defeating Oregon 17-11, the Orange got right back to work. Heading into Thursday’s game, Syracuse moved up three spots to number four in this weeks IWLCA poll.

Emily Hawryschuk led all scorers with an outstanding five-point performance. The attackman tallied four goals while picking up an assist.

Neena Merola and Riley Donahue each added a pair of goals helping Syracuse cruise past Albany. The Orange never looked back after an aggressive first half.

“I thought we got off to a great start, we had an excellent first half and really took control of the game,” Syracuse Head Coach Gary Gait said.

Throughout the first three games, the ladies have shined in the first half. They have totaled 32 goals in that span. Heading into the second half with a comfortable lead gives Coach Gait an opportunity to see what his bench can do.

“I think it’s the depth of the quality of players, were almost ten scores a game out of 20 goals. We’ve played our entire bench all three games so far,” Gait said.

As of now things have been in favor of the Orange. From the opening faceoff against UConn to the end of today’s game, Gait says he’s impressed with what he has seen.

It’s safe to say the first three games were a warmup for the ladies. When ACC plays start, things may get interesting.

“The next three games are going to be the three toughest all year,” Gait said.

The Orange will head down to No.16 Virginia, then head back to the Dome to host No.4 Florida and No 1. Maryland for a two game home stand. It’s safe to say that these three games will be a true test for the Orange.

Right now the flow of the Orange offense seems dominant. On Wednesday, the NCAA national statistics were released and Syracuse ranks first in the nation in points per game and they are tied with Vanderbilt for the top spot in scoring with 30.5 PPG and 20.0 GPG.